Cap for pencils and pens



T. J. CICHON CAP FOR PENCILS AND PENS Filed DeC. 24, 1927 May 28, 1929.

I lII Patented May 28, 1929.

THOMAS J. CICHON, F BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

CAP FOR PENCILS AND PENS.

Application tiled December 24, 1927. Serial No. 242,362.

My invention relates to caps for pencils and pens. and has more particularly reference to a. rubber eraser attachment for pencils or pens.

'l'he primary object of my invent-ion is the provision of an attachment for pencils or pens serving as a cap for the same and wherein is embodied a rubber eraser or other eraser element of considerable length completely confined within an enclosure so as to protect the same and capable of being extended through the end of the attachment for use,

. regardless of the varying length of the rubber eraser as it becomes worn.

Another object of my invention is to provide an attachment of this kind, which embodies in its construction a cap adapted to be litted over either end of a pencil or over either end of the body portion oit' a fountain pen, and which is so constructed that it enclo'ses a cylindrical rubber or other eraser element capable of being extended for use when needed.

A still further object of my invention isn to provide an attachment for pencils or pens in which an eraser-containing chamber of considerable length is arranged, and wherein an eraser clement is positioned in fully protected condition, but capable of being extended out through the body portion of the attachment so that it may be used for erasing pencil or inltv marks.

The invention consists in the novel features of construction` and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the subjoined claims.

In the drawings Fig. l is an elevation of a pencil showing my improved attachment in longitudinal section as applied to the unsharpened end thereof, the eraser element thereof being shown fully enclosed and in a protected position to guard against the erasing end thereof becoming soiled.

Fig. 2 is a. similar View, somewhat enlarged, showing the eraser element extended through the upper end of the attachment, the pencil being broken away.

Fig. 3 is a view of a fountain pen showing my improved .attachment applied to the up per end of the body portion thereof, said body portion being shown in elevation and the attachment in longitudinal section.

4tachment or cap applied Fig. 4 is a detached longitudinal section of the guard sleeve adapted to enclose the eraser element and to be screw-threaded or otherwise adjustably attached to the cap member of the attachment.

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section through the cap member of the attachment.

Fig. 6 is a detached perspective view of the eraser element.

1n the drawings, 7 designates a pencil and 8`the body port-ion of a fountain pen. 9 designates my improved attachment considered as a whole and adapted to serve as a. cap device for a fountain pen or for a pencil.

In Figs. l and 2 I have shown my improved attachment applied to the unsharpened end of a pencil, but it is to be understood that when the pencil is not in use this attachment may be appliedv to the sharpened end of the pencil in order to protect the point thereof.

In Fig. 3 I have shown my improved atto theupper end of the body portion of a fountain pen; provision beingmade in the construction of this attachment for screW-threadingly attaching the same to the opposite end of the body portion in the same manner as an ordinary cap of a fountain pen.

My attachment or cap device comprises a cap member 10 in the form of a sleeve open at its lower end and closed at its upper end, and in the form used on pencils it has a short externally screw-threaded region 11 near its upper end. In the form used on pens, this externally screw-threaded region is near the lower end of the cap member. A guard sleeve 12 is tittcd over the cap member 10 and is longitudinally adjustable thereon. For this purpose it is internally screw-thread ed along a considerable portion of its length, as at 13, the screw threads in the form used on a cap device adapted to be applied to a pencil, extending from a point a short distance from the lower open end 14 of said guard sleeve to a point a short distance from the upper end of said sleeve, and in the case of a cap device adapted for use on a fountain pen, these screw threads preferably' extend along a somewhat short range, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. Y

A cylindrical opening is formed axially in the upper end of the guard sleeve l2 and this opening is of somewhat smaller diameter than the interiorof the remainder of the sleeve so as to provide an internal shoulder 16, The upper end of this Sleeve may therefore be said to be closed, except for the opening 15, which is provided for a purpose to appear hereinafter.

The internal screw threads 13 are adapted for threaded attachment to the short exterior screw-threaded region 11 of the cap member 10, and by reason of the length of the screwthreaded portion 13, a considerable adjustment of the guard sleeve lengthwise on the cap member 10 is permitted.

The guard sleeve 12 is at all times so positioned or adjusted on the cap member 10 that a chamber 17 is provided between the upper end of said guard sleeve and the upper end of said cap member, and in this chamber is arranged a rubber eraser or other eraser element 18, which is preferably cylindrical. This eraser element, in preferred form, comprises a cylindrical shank -19 and an enlarged cylindrical base 20 forming an upwardly-facing shoulder 21. The diameter of the shank 19 is slightly less than the diameter of the cylindrical opening 15 in the guard sleeve 12 so that the shank of this eraser element may be extended outwardly through said opening.

The lower end of the eraser element, or more particularly the under side of the base 20 of said eraser element, rests upon the upper closed end of the cap member 10, as at 22, and surrounding the shank of said eraser element is a coil spring 23, the lower end of which bears against the shoulder 21 formed on the eraser element and the upper end against the shoulder 16 formed on the guard sleeve. The shoulder 16 may also be referred to as the under side of the top Wall of said guard sleeve. This spring exerts its pressure downwardly against the base of the eraser element and keeps the same at all times v in firm contact with the upper end of the cap -member 10, or in other Words, in retracted position. The chamber 17 may therefore be said to receive the eraser element 18 and the spring 23, and the guard sleeve fully encloses said eraser element exceptwhen adjusted to cause the upper end of the eraser element to be projected upwardly-beyond the upper end Wall thereof.

It is to be noted that the upper end wall of said guard sleeve is comparatively thick so that thenpper end portion or terminal of the eraser element may be retained Within the lower portion of the opening 15 yet be fully protected against becoming soiled, as shown in Fig. 1.

vAnother advantage in so constructing said end wall, is that the shank of the eraser element is properlyy guided at all tiires to allow it to be extended through the upper end of said guard sleeve, without possi ility of its comingin contact with projecting parts on the guardsleeve or shoulders, or other parts that might obstruct or otherwise interfere with the free and easy operation of the device.

lt is, of course, understood that the cap member and lguard sleeve may be constructed of any of various materials, such as metal or alloys of any kind, or rubber or compositions of various kinds now used in constructing fountain pens and the like, and as the Walls of these parts will be compartively thin, it is found highly advantageous to construct the upper end Wall of the guard sleeve considerably thicker than the cylindrical side wall thereof so as to provide a compartively long wall for the opening 15, and thus maintain the upper end of the eraser element in guided relation within said guard sleeve, even though the upper end surface of said eraser element is in a plane below the outer surface of the upper end wall of said guard sleeve and in a fully protectedposition. This advantage would, of course, not exist if said end wall were made comparatively thin, in" c is held against exing or bulging within said chamber, due to the lengthened wall of the opening 15 formed in the guard sleeve, and also due to the fact that the eraser element has an enlarged base providing considerable bearing area against the upper end wall of the cap member 10.

It will also be apparent that as the eraser element becomes consumed, the guard sleeve will be adjusted on the cap member accordingly and this will cause the spring to become correspondingly compressed until theconvolutions thereof are brought in full contact one with another, after which, if. desired, the guard sleeve may be removed from the cap member, the eraser element withdrawn from the guard sleeve, and the spring removed therefrom. The eraser element ma then be replaced within the guard sleeve andi,

`since at such times it will be almost wholly consumed, the shank 19 thereof' will be re-l duced in len th to a pointwhere it may be vfreely exten ed through the opening 15 in Athe guard sleeve with the base 2O of the eraser element clamped between the upper end wall of said guard sleeve and the upper end wall of the ca member 10,- the extent of projection of t e eraser. element being such only as is desirable for best results.

When using an attachment of this kind on pens, the interior of the cap member 10 is preferably formed of two different diameters to provide a small bore portion 24 and a large bore portion 25. This, however, may be varied, but it is found necessary, in can members used for fountain pens, to provide the bore thereof with a short screw-threaded region 26 a distance from the lower open end of said cap member, and invariably the lower end of this bore, or more particularly that portion extending from the screw-threaded region 2G to the open lower end of the cap member, is slightly beveled, as shown at 27,

ign 3, to tit onto the tapered portion 28 provided near the upper end of the body portion 8 of the pen.

lVhcn reversing this attachment so as to enclose the pen point 29 of the pen, the threaded region 30, usually provided on the body portion of fountain pens near the pen point, is brought into threaded engagement with the screw-threaded portion 26 of the cap member 10.

When the cap member l() has its bore reduced along its upper portion, a. shoulder 3l is provided in said cap member and the penpoint end of the body portion 8, designated by the numeral 32, bears against this shoulder when the body portion of vthe pen is reversed from that shown in Fig. 3; the pen point 29 entering the reduced portion of the bore.

When applying my invention to a fountain pen, the guard sleeve l2 is provided with a clip 33 to be used in the usual manner for retaining a pen within the owners pocket.

An eraser' element adapted for use in connection with my attachment constructed to be applied to a pencil, is usually made of soft rubber, such as used for erasing pencil marks; while an eraser element adapted for use with my attachment constructed to be applied to a fountain or other pen is made of a rubber composition capable of erasing ink; and I have found that a rubber ink eraser applied to a pen is a highly desirable device when applied in a convenient manner, and especially when provision is made for fully enclosing the eraser to 'guard against its becoming soiled when not in use,

Having thus described my invention, what l, claim is l. A device of the kind described, compris ing a cap member, a hollow member adjustably surrounding at least a portion of said cap member and forming a chamber above the same, an eraser element retained within said chamber and projected outwardly through the upper end of said hollow member to any desired extent upon adjusting said hollow member accordingly, and means to hold said eraser element against movement in said chamber.

2. A device of the kind described, comprising two hollow members, one being fitted onto and around the other and being iengthwise adjustable thereon, one of, said members being adapted to be applied to a pencil or pen and the other providing a chamber variable in length, an eraser element within said chamber and adapted to have one end thereof extended outwardly from said'chamber in proportion to the adjustment of said adjustable member, and means to hold said eraser element against movement in said chamber under any relative adjustment of said two hollow members.

3. A device ofthe kind described, compris ing a cap member adapted to be applied to a pencil or pen, a guard sleeve threaded onto said cap member and having an opening in its upper end, an eraser element within said guard sleeve bearing with one end against said cap member and having its other end fitted into said opening, said guard sleeve being longitudinally adjustable on said cap member to cause the outer end of said eraser element to be projected therefrom through said opening to any desired extent, and means to hold said eraser element against movement within said guard sleeve under any adjustment made of the latter.

4. A device of the kind described, comprising a cap member, a guard sleeve threaded onto said cap member and projecting upwardly therefrom, said guard sleeve being closed at its upper end and having an axial opening in said closed end, an eraser element within said guard sleeve having an enlarged base forming an upwardly-facing shoulder, said eraser element bearing at its lower end against the upper end of said cap member and having its upper end fitted within said opening, and a spring surrounding said eraser element and bearing at its upper end against the closed end of said guard sleeve and at its lower end against the shoulder of said eraser element.

5. A device of the kind described, comprising a cap member having exterior screw threads along its upper portion, a guard sleeve provided with interior screw threads extending from a point near its lower end to a point near its upper end, said guard sleeve beine closed at its upper end and having an axial opening in said closed end, an eraser element comprisin an elongated shank and an enlarged base orming an upward1yfac ing shoulder, said base bearing against the Aupper end of said cap member andthe outer end of said shank being normally positioned within the opening formed in the closed end of said guard sleeve, and a springsurround'- ing said shank and bearing at its lower end against the shoulder of said eraser element and at its upperl end against the inner surface of the closed end of said guard sleeve,

In testimony whereof if affix my signature.

riHUB/iAS J. CCHON. 

